More than the Sum
by QueenKalasin
Summary: One took practice, two was unpredictable, three was a curse... and a gift, four was just as bad as three, five was the best thing that ever happened to him and six was...vital.
1. Chapter 1

**More than the Sum**

One…

At first, he was all alone, a single boy in a crowded train station. There was no one else, and maybe that should have been hard, but it wasn't for him. He was good at being one. He knew the intricacies of being one, especially when being one really meant being one against another. He was one against his family when he was small, knew the pain of being one against a foe with friends who help. He was one against a world that looked to him for answers and miracles that were beyond him. He was the one that remained, survived…outlasted.

He was worse at being one part of something bigger. Being one within took a lot more than being one with out; it took a choice. One took practice.

Two…

He had never been part of two before, not until he met that lone boy on the crowded train. Before, he had always been part of many, never alone or lonely, but never especially connected. He'd never known what it was like to be part of a pair, to be the one person someone else had to depend on and really depending on that person, too. Sure, later he would learn that two wasn't always so nice as all that, when he went on to be part of other twos. He would learn that two really was one plus one, and when you were two, a lot depended on the other person. Two could be fun, comforting, exciting, awkward… or just bad. Two could be all those things as once.

Two was unpredictable, and usually a good thing, no matter who the other one was. But no matter how nice other twos or three were, no matter that there were always bigger numbers than that, he never forgot the first two, and what it had meant to him. Two was something all his own.

Three…

She wrapped three around herself like a blanket, like a protective shell, like the wall of a fortress. Three was everything to a girl who had always felt like less than one. Three was more than she'd ever dreamed of, as a little girl with no one else, when all she had wanted was a single other person in the world who was like her, who _liked_ her. Three made her smile, gave her a knowing look that told those outside that she was on the inside, that she was a part of three, and yes, it was a fabulous as it seemed.

Three meant the world to a little girl, and later, when sometimes it felt like three was cracking, like it was uneven, she would hold three to her heart like an old teddy bear. Because three really was something special, something that she wanted to hold on to, even when two looked awfully tempting and bigger numbers were beckoning as well. Three was comfort, strength and… eventually, three was nostalgia.

Four…

She never knew how to act when they were four. She was tied to each, and bound willingly enough. She knew the rules any other time, but when they were four, she found herself caught. She couldn't be just little sister or friend or girlfriend, but she didn't know if she was supposed to be more or less.

Maybe they were never meant to be four. Maybe she was just one, hanging around their three. And yet, she could never leave. She just sat awkwardly with them, dividing, multiplying herself, desperately seeking balance. Four was as close as she could get to three.

Five…

He was proud of five, he really was. He was so incredibly grateful to be part of the five most distinguished people in his house. Five made him a leader, because being part of five let him know that there would always be four at his back, even when the rest of the house thought he was worthless. And, sure, maybe he knew that five was a pretty big number, a number without much cosiness or intimacy, but it was certainly better than always being one.

Besides, there was confidence to be found in the number five, but most of all, there was relief. No more bullies, school or parental, no one could touch him because he wasn't alone. Five was the best thing that ever happened to him.

Six…

She loved the number six. Before she was part of six, she was barely anything at all, just a singular obscure person, floating on the peripheries of life. Six meant having friends, six meant being _real_ for the first time. She was blessed with six.

And sure, she knew that within those six, there were twos and threes and all sorts of pairs, but she was just glad to be one of the six. One of _them_. She loved them all and depended on them more than she had on anyone since the death of her mother. Six was vital.

ooOoo

_A.N.: So, no one probably ever expected an update to this oneshot, ever. You have HPismyhero31 to thank or blame as you so choose. They sent me a PM way back this summer, and I'll share here part of my reply:_

_ "This story has kind of an interesting history, actually. It started as something that I just sort of wrote without giving much thought, and so, as it stands on the sight, one-three were all about Harry and 4 was Ginny, 5 Neville and 6 Luna. I was content and would have moved on, had not Phil Boswell reviewed saying he wished one of each number corresponded with each of the Gryffindor six. Because, as soon as he said that, I wished it to._

_So I rewrote the story a bit, toggling the perspective and so forth so that each number now has its own distinct member of the six. Some remain virtually unchanged, of course, but now everyone fits and it makes my poor OCD'ed little soul smile and sigh happily. And now, I think I shall go post my updated version as another chapter in that story, becuase your PM has made me feel like someone may care."_

_Basically, what I have done is replace More than the Sum with the version you see here. But I couldn't bring myself to delete the original, becuase, honestly, the third part was the reason I wrote the story in the first place and I couldn't bear to see it completely die. So, feel free to compare, contrast or just ignore the one you don't like as well as the other. _

_Cheers,_

_QK_


	2. Chapter 2

**More than the Sum**

**One**

He was good at being one. He knew the intricacies of being one, especially when being one really meant being one against another. He was one against his family when he was small, knew the pain of being one against a foe with friends who help. He was one against a world that looked to him for answers and miracles that were beyond him. He was the one that remained, survived…outlasted.

He was worse at being one part of something bigger. Being one within took a lot more than being one with out; it took a choice. One took practice.

**Two**

He was often part of two, but the rules always changed. Two really was one plus one, and when you were two, a lot depended on the other person. Two could be fun, comforting, exciting, awkward… or just bad. Two could be all those things as once.

Sometimes, it was nice to be two with a friend, or almost stranger; then, two was simple. Two with someone who made you laugh was good. Sometimes, when it was just you and one other, then it was scary and two could be too intense. Being two with _her_, though…perfection. Two was unpredictable.

**Three **

He hated the number three. It was just so uneven, unfair. He would rather have been any other number, but he was cursed always as three.

Because, and this is the part that stung, as much as he hated being three, he couldn't have let either of them go, not for anything. He loved them both, needed them both and didn't even begrudge them the special happiness they had with each other, even though it was that connection that made being three so lonely.

So he hated it…but he could never change it. Three was a curse and a gift.

**Four**

She never knew how to act when they were four. She was tied to each, and bound willingly enough. She knew the rules any other time, but when they were four, she found herself caught. She couldn't be just little sister or friend or girlfriend, but she didn't know if she was supposed to be more or less.

Maybe they were never meant to be four. Maybe she was just one, hanging around their three. And yet, she could never leave. She just sat awkwardly with them, dividing, multiplying herself, desperately seeking balance. Four was just as bad as three.

**Five**

He was proud of five, he really was. He was so incredibly grateful to be part of the five most distinguished people in his house. Five made him a leader, because being part of five let him know that there would always be four at his back, even when the rest of the house thought he was worthless.

There was confidence to be found in the number five, but most of all, there was relief. No more bullies, school or paternal, no one could touch him because he wasn't alone. Five was the best thing that ever happened to him.

**Six**

She loved the number six. Before she was part of six, she was barely anything at all, just a singular obscure person, floating on the peripheries of life. Six meant having friends, six meant being _real_ for the first time. She was blessed with six.

And sure, she knew that within those six, there were twos and threes and all sorts of pairs, but she was just glad to be one of the six. One of _them_. She loved them all and depended on them more than she had on anyone since the death of her mother. Six was... _vital_.


End file.
